Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/366055
hange can be uncomfort- able, but is unavoidable. One key to change is adaptation, being aware of and flexible to the trends of change. At the Pear Bureau Northwest, we strive to stay on top of trends. Success has followed. Some of the areas where we are ahead include social media and public relations. Social media, while not expensive, require a strong commitment in order to keep posts and information fresh, whether it be the world's largest website dedicated to pears, updated Pinterest pages, or contests on Facebook. Your Pear Bureau is active on many forms of popular social media, which keeps us relevant among younger consumers while reaching many people of all ages in an inexpensive form of communications. Check us out at: www.facebook.com/usapears ; www.Pinterest.com/usapears ; or follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/USApears. Research and data are also important in order to track change and identify opportunities. Today's retail- ers are hungry for information on pears. We conduct research that the retailers, as well as our industry, can use to increase pear sales and grower returns. The Pear Bureau has extensive data that shows retailers how they compare to their competition and helps them increase sales. We also have consumer research, tracking their purchase triggers and barriers, which helps us provide solutions and target messages to increase consumer consumption. In the 2014-15 season, we will conduct nutrition studies, involving human trials, to help us identify health benefits that we can tout to magazines and blog- gers, providing more reasons for consumers to choose pears over the other 400 to 600 items in the produce department. It is important to look ahead and track change and trends but also important to look behind to see what is going right and what needs to be improved. We track short-term goals, such as the sales lift in a pear sampling, as well as longer metrics, such as return to growers. The price per ton returned to the grower has doubled since 2000, and the total pounds of fresh pears consumed in the United States have increased 7 percent in the last decade. Small successes can build into big ones. Visits to our website usapears.org have doubled in the last five years. More than 300,000 people access our website each year, searching for recipes as well as information about varieties and nutrition of pears. Our Facebook likes increased by a third last year, with nearly 50,000 people engaging us through this social media site. These successes can help drive tomorrow's increase in consumption and next year's increase in grower returns. To see additional success measures, please go to www.usapears.org/success.aspx or feel free to contact me directly with any questions at kmoffitt@usapears.com. • www.goodfruit.com GOOD FRUIT GROWER SEPTEMBER 2014 27 GOOD POINT Kevin Moffitt, Pear Bureau Northwest Designed for West Coast Orchard & Vineyard Operations Call For Special Introductory Offer CALIFORNIA-OREGON 509-840-1828 PASCO 509-544-6678 WALLA WALLA 509-525-4550 UNION GAP 509-248-8411 GEORGE 509-785-2595 CLE ELUM 509-674-4544 SUNNYSIDE 509-839-2066 See Your Nearest Blueline Equipment Dealer Today . . . Introducing the NEW BLUELINE UTILIT Y FORKLIFT t"WBJMBCMFJOBOEMC t"WBJMBCMF*O5XP.BTU)FJHIUT w4UBHF.BTU BOEw4UBHF.BTU t:BONBS¥5JFS%JFTFM&OHJOF PS(.1SPQBOF&OHJOF t5XP4QFFE "VUPNBUJD5SBOTNJTTJPO t)FBWZ%VUZ $MFBS7JFX .BTU8JUI4JEF4IJGU t%VBM1OFVNBUJD5JSFT t1PXFS4UFFSJOH Success in pear marketing